The below infographic presents national debt graph of the US. The United States public debt generally refers to the money borrowed by the federal government of the United States through the issue of securities by the Treasury and other federal government agencies. US public debt consists of two components
Public debt increases or decreases as a result of the annual unified budget deficit or surplus.The federal government budget deficitor surplus is the difference between government receipts and spending, ignoring intra-governmental transfers. However, some spending that is excluded from the deficit (supplemental appropriations) also adds to the debt.
Source : White House